"Maoist movement is levy-based, not ideology-driven"

Rural development minister says we should not demonise security forces

GN Bureau | August 14, 2012




Far from being ideology-driven, the Maoist movement is a levy-based movement, the rural development minister Jairam Ramesh said here on Monday. The minister was delivering the inaugural edition of the Governance Lecture series, 'Saranda and the Audacity of Hope: An experiment in Grassroots Governance’ in New Delhi

“For every ton of iron ore that you remove, a portion of levy goes to Maoists. All they want is levy. I think the Maoists are creating market economy much more than the government,” Ramesh said.

Ramesh even went on to say that if the government stops all developmental-related flow of funds to these areas, the Maoist movement will die down

“To give you a specific example, Pakur, an erstwhile peaceful place in the Santhal Pargana area of Jharkhand, has begun to attract Maoists just because mining has started there. Suddenly, the Maoists have become the champions of the tribals there,” he said. 

"So-called liberated zones are the mining rich areas. The bauxite-rich areas are Maoist-affected. The iron-ore rich areas are Maoist-affected. Coal-rich areas are Maoist-affected. Why did it happen?” he asked.

Lashing out at Maoists sypathisers, he said there should not be any attempt at romanticising the Maoists. "Let us not romanticise Maoists and demonise security forces. Don't tell me the story that Maoists are not using children as shield. Two of the abductors of the Sukma collector Alex Menon were 14 year-old children," Ramesh said.
 

Comments

 

Other News

Gandhian movement after Gandhi failed: Ram Guha

The Gandhian movement in India, after Gandhi’s death, failed, says Ramachandra Guha, and blames Vinoba Bhave for it. But the movement found new, fertile grounds around the world and succeeded in bringing about a change in South Africa, the US and elsewhere. It is high time it returned home. Of cour

When religion, politics and Bollywood come together

Tavleen Singh, noted journalist and political commentator, has turned to fiction, with her debut novel ‘The Actor’ (HaperCollins India). Set in the near future, it has a superstar, Amit Singh, turning to politics, when the political landscape is dominated by prime minister Guru Gaynendraj

Cabinet approves setting up of Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority

The union cabinet, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), called Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA), to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment within the broad domains of Transp

Why foundational literacy and numeracy is key to school education

Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) are often described as the building blocks of education. Yet, their significance goes well beyond a child’s ability to read a sentence, write a response or solve a basic mathematical problem. These foundational skills shape how children understand the world,

When police data becomes the algorithm

For decades, policing has followed a familiar sequence: a crime occurs, the police respond, an investigation produces records and those records become part of the institutional memory of the criminal justice system. Artificial intelligence is beginning to alter that sequence. Instead of merely recording

Before India voted, the framers worried about the referee

“We are making a Constitution forever and not only for today.” Shibban Lal Saksena said this in the Constituent Assembly on June 15, 1949. He was warning that a ruling party might one day choose a loyalist to run India’s elections. Seventy-seven years later, the Supreme Court is wrestli

Upcoming Conferences



-->

Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter